Drag Me Down
by God-King-Moth
Summary: Water is never so still that moving through it causes no ripples. :Warnings inside, please read them!.: ByaIchi. Mermaids.


: **Warnings** ; ByakuyaxIchigo, Gore, Trans!Ichigo, Dark themes, OOC, definite consent issues, manipulation, cannibalism, general unpleasantness, brief allude to sex, nothing particularly descriptive, dysphoria, misgendering, non-human creatures fucking with human minds. Also, unedited beyond vague read over! Have fun with any mistakes. I'm sorry, not sorry, and absolutely repentant all at once. **The mer is based off of the mer found in Delta_Immortal 's 'Pretty Human Virgin Boy Comes To The Pond- Feed Him All The Best Heads' on AO3** \- dark gory DerekXStiles story with lots of sex, so be careful there. I'm not particularly a fan of the Teen Wolf franchise or the pairing, but the design for the mer captured my love, because I am trash for both mer, monsters and dragons and everything to do with fantasy;; so here we are. Props to Delta_Immortal for making me interested enough in only one character to read the whole story, and it's good writing, if it's your thing I totally recommend it.:  
..0.

Ichigo was tired, stumbling out of the tent and yawning. His friends were still asleep but he wanted some water from the cooler they'd brought; he felt dry, strangely enough, as the air still carried moisture from the rainfall that morning.

His bare feet carried him past the cooler entirely and his brain didn't really catch up with that fact until he was kneeling by a stream a ways from the tents. He blinks, confused, but something in the back of his head tells him it's fine, so he dips his hands into the water and smears the liquid up his bare arms to his shoulders with a blissful sigh. It was cold, enough to leave him chilled to the bone, but it was a welcome relief to how dry his skin had felt. He absently follows along the shoreline to where the stream evens into a large, circular lake; a few pebbles slip under the surface where he's dislodged them, and there's no ripple. The water doesn't move at all, entirely still and dark.

Ichigo sits on the edge and dips his feet in, mind still hazy, and the water's temperature is so cold he feels like he might ice over and shatter, but he doesn't want to move away; especially when he hears the singing.

There aren't any words, more a feeling, soft and welcoming and he falls into it, only snapping into a state of awareness when he sees the person staring at him from the middle of the lake, head and shoulders above the water. He feels like they're glowing, almost, and they smile at him and he feels his heart thrum in his chest, and they move closer, through the still water, not a ripple or wave in their wake.

It's a man, more obvious with proximity, long black hair and strange, glassy black eyes, smooth aristocratic features. Ichigo feels warning bells going in his head but the song muffles them.

Cold hands curl over his knees and he stares down at the man in front of him curiously.

"Will you tell me your name, sunshine?" The man asks, and his voice is deep caramel and enticing, and Ichigo shivers in both fear and want. "Should I?" He asks, a thread of wariness clearing his mind slightly.

"I would like to know the name of one as beautiful as you, with the sun in your hair." The man smiles again, adoringly, and Ichigo licks suddenly dry lips. "Ichigo. Ichigo Kurosaki." He demurs, and the man looks pleased. "A lovely name. You may call me Byakuya." Ichigo nods, stunned, and the man leans up, murmuring "Will you swim with me, let me have the sun to myself?"- and Ichigo is hyper aware of water dripping onto his sleeping shorts and loose tank top, the fact he isn't wearing his binder and soft, a-cup breasts are visible from a higher vantage point- before cool lips are pressing against his own, fitting together so nicely. The warning bells scream but the cool temperature is so good and soothing on his skin where he feels too dry and warm, and he just lets it happen, rides it out, and the kiss is blissfully good even with only his meagre experience to compare it to. He opens his mouth willingly, and he feels the smooth slide of rubber-chitin scales against his legs as the man pushes closer, long silky wet hair falling over Ichigo's shoulders as he's gently pressed back to lay on the shore.

Ichigo freaks out, eyes snapping open and teeth clamping down on the man's-the thing's- tongue and his own accidentally, causing his own to bleed slightly and the thing to recoil, leaving it's oily tasting blood in his mouth, which he swallows reflexively. He scrambles back away from the water desperately, eyes wild, every in-built alarm the human race has ever developed to warn for predators screaming at him crystal clear even as the impossibly gorgeous song starts up again. Ichigo thinks he's going to either vomit or crawl back to the water's edge with desperate need, when a hand latches around his ankle and drags him back, scraping his knees over the pebbles and sticks on the ground as he scrabbles for purchase to resist the inexorable pull. He thrashes and flails, kicking and struggling even as the creature pins him with its larger body and grins, still so attractive and terrifyingly non-human. Fins he didn't see before flick at the side of its head where ears would be, and he calms momentarily, struggling useless. "W-what do you want?" He swallows, and he can feel the dampness cloying at his skin now, rather than welcoming and cool.

It licks his blood from its mouth and smiles again. Ichigo snarls suddenly and shoves at it, but it only laughs sweetly and buries it's face in the curve of Ichigo's neck. He stiffens, eyes wide, heart pounding, very aware of sharp teeth near his throat. "Are you going to eat me?" He grinds out behind clenched teeth and it chuckles. "Maybe." It says in that voice, and Ichigo feels repulsed at the heat that slides down his spine when he hears it. "I could eat the sun."

It sniffs his neck and hums. "Virgin?"

It coos and he shivers, unable to fight or escape. "Let me feed you heads, hearts, only the very best of prey. I'll never let you be hungry. You can keep me bright and warm." It sounds like it's pleading, almost, trying to lure him with it's idea of gifts, though he doesn't understand why. Bile rises in his throat as he sorts the words in his mind; he has no doubt that it means to feed him human flesh. "Fuck no!" He snarls, struggling all the more.

"Ichigo. What do you need? I'll give you anything, I'll take only the best care of you. Such pretty sunlight." It murmurs, and he can feel the fog creeping over his fear again, the use of his name somehow assuaging his panic. He relaxes ever so slightly, eyes falling half closed as it kisses him again, so sweetly, and the cold touch is soothing again.

He can vaguely hear someone call his name and then there's an angry hiss as it-Byakuya- is torn off him and he's pulled away quickly. He recognizes Chad's worried voice and clings to him, hyperventilating. It could have pulled him in and drowned him and eaten him at any time and he's trembling with the adrenaline overdose that comes with barely escaping death.

Byakuya snarls roughly at Chad and Rukia, Orihime looks terrified and Tatsuki looks fit to wade in and murder the creature when it pins Ichigo with an intense stare and slinks beneath the surface again.

They all hurry back, away from the pond and stream even as Ichigo relays everything exactly from the hazy feeling the song gave him to the cold water. They fuss over him and he's relieved, feels safe again, though still wary. Chad watches worriedly, and they all dress, pack up camp and get the hell out of dodge three days earlier than they planned. Rukia invites them over to the empty manor to stay instead; where she can research what the fuck Byakuya even was as they all stick together protectively. They agree.

Ichigo fights to get to the surface, fingers scraping over rough rock and silt as he scrabbles at the edge of the deep lake, Byakuya pressing clawed hands against his shoulder blades and keeping him down. His lungs burn white-hot and he wants to scream but he can't, and Byakuya smiles in a knife-sharp way, long thick tail twining around Ichigo's legs like an eel, dull pink and steel grey in splashes. "Die for me." He croons, and Ichigo goes to suck in a desperate breath just as he wakes up. He shivers quietly, regulating his breathing carefully, using all his coping mechanisms to stay calm. It was only a nightmare. He's safe now.

Rukia had searched legends and myths and folktales for hours before finding something that had even remote connections to the very real encounter they'd had, and finding out 'mermaids are real!' had no fairytale sparkles or glee attached to it. The book talks of bodies of water it can control- anything connected to it's source lake and Ichigo worries quietly. He wonders if it could affect water through pipes, even, if it was connected to a greater span of water than it's lake implied. He asks Rukia and she assures him the lake and stream aren't connected to anything bigger, and his worry is assuaged.

Homework is a welcome return to normalcy, and Tatsuki and Rukia bicker amiably over their answers when they all sit at the table to work together, Orihime laughing softly at their antics. Ichigo has an essay to proofread before making a final copy, and Chad has maths homework to do. He turns in early to a chorus of good-nights, and heads to one of the bigger bathrooms in the mansion. He runs himself a bubble bath, shoulders sore and neck stiff, and he's stressed enough he's sure he's allowed some relaxation. He slips into the wonderfully warm water, the tub large and spacious and he hums in bliss as he leans against the edge, eyes slipping half-shut as he washes himself off until he feels squeaky clean before closing them completely.

He must've fallen asleep, propped against the edge of the tub, as the water is cold when he opens his eyes again. He stretches, and the bubbles shift a bit, sparser than they were before, and his breath catches in his throat at the glassy, mirror surface that doesn't ripple even when he moves.

He shudders and tries not to panic, slowly moving to get out, but a hand wraps around his wrist like steel and pulls him back to sit in the tub with a yelp. He sucks in a breath as he turns, Byakuya looming over him and he feels small and vulnerable with no clothing stopping the creature's gaze as it observes him almost clinically.

"You're a very pretty girl, sunshine." It smiles, and Ichigo sees red. "I'm not a girl!" He hisses, and honestly there are far more important things to worry about than being misgendered, like the fact that the creature seems to think he's a human version of the sun, but he's already strung thin on willpower, and it's automatic. Byakuya blinks, looking surprised. "Really?" It eyes his breasts and then between his legs and he wants to cry or commit mass homicide, he's not sure. He's also not sure if he's about to be drowned and eaten, either, not necessarily in that order. He contemplates calling for help but he's far away from his friend's rooms and even if they hear him, he doesn't want them in danger.

Byakuya hums. "Alright. You're a very pretty boy then." He smiles again, like that makes everything fine and dandy, and Ichigo makes a break for the dry tile floor. He's dragged back with a low growl and arms wrap around his waist, like steel girders, pressing his back to the creature's chest and he struggles even as Byakuya presses his lips to Ichigo's ear, singing softly. It's stronger, this time, more encompassing, and he feels one restricting arm shift to stroke through his damp orange hair. He bares his teeth weakly, and Byakuya chuckles lowly, amused. "So pretty, Ichigo, with your sunlight." It shifts and the hand moves from his hair, reaching into the still water and bringing something out of it. Ichigo feels like he should be shivering but he isn't, though Byakuya is colder even than the water. Something warm is pressed to his mouth, and Ichigo tries to jerk his head away but Byakuya presses it past his lips and Ichigo is terrified of his teeth being broken, so the slippery substance is pushed into his mouth. He eats it unhappily when Byakuya covers his mouth so he can't spit it out, becoming even more unhappy when flavor bursts across his tongue. He hopes he throws it up, Byakuya's comments about the heads rolling in his mind.

He's hand fed strips of meat slowly, and every time he tries to fight or escape or even refuse more, Byakuya scrapes warning teeth over his neck and he stops struggling on pain of death.

He can hear, now, hear the song Byakuya is always singing. It's like an aura almost, always there thrumming beneath the surface. Ichigo wonders absently how he makes humans hear it, through the clouds in his head, making him feel hazy and soft as cold hands run over his pliant body. He's splayed in the water now, Byakuya keeping him from submerging completely, fingers moving over his collarbone as the other hand flattens a palm over his ribs, stroking down to the curve of his hip. The mer seems pleased, at least, and Ichigo can't grasp why he should be afraid when the feeling presses insistently at the back of his head. Byakuya runs his hands down over Ichigo's legs then back up along the inside of his thighs, barely avoiding his genitals before smoothing up his torso and over his breasts, cupping them curiously. Ichigo feels a burst of angry revulsion but he's far too hazy to act on it, and it fades when Byakuya moves his hands to his shoulders instead, murmuring his name. "Such a strange boy, Ichigo."

Ichigo reaches for the song and it seems to thrum in delight, pretty waves of sound flowing over him and he almost feels like he's singing back. With just how pleased Byakuya looks, maybe he is without realizing it.

He wakes in the lukewarm bath, water see through and rippling when he shifts, bubbles long faded. He isn't sure it was just a dream, but he can't even taste the meat he was forced to eat; that made the song affect him so much more than before. He stumbles out on shaky legs, dries himself and dresses in sweatpants and a shirt stolen from Chad, pulling the plug in the bathtub.

He topples into his bed and sleeps like a corpse.

He's become twitchy, now, paranoid, and it's spread to his friends. Rukia switches the plumbing of the mansion to tank water only, and they all search through books to find out how to save him. He's not sure he can be saved by anything other than leaving the country entirely.

Food doesn't taste good. It doesn't taste bad either, but it takes much more to fill his stomach, now. He sneaks out to the pond out the back, small and filled with fish, and Byakuya is connected to the largest aquifer around, so the pond is mirror-still, moonlight reflecting off it. He dips bare feet in, and there's no way the pond should be deep enough for him to sit on the stone edge and have the water reach just under his knees without his feet touching the bottom, but it is. Byakuya moves out of the water and kisses him fiercely, _wanting_ so he _takes_ , and Ichigo welcomes it all while hating himself with cold passion. The mer whispers endearments and praise, and Ichigo thinks of cool water and all the heads of any prey he could ever want; and only shakes out of it when he realizes he's murmuring "Yes, yes-" to all of Byakuya's promises as the mer kisses over his face and sucks on the skin of his throat and calls him sunshine. He pulls away and Byakuya snarls and lunges for him, but Ichigo sprints over the grass, back to the house. He can hear the mer raging and calling for him to come back, but it cuts off when he closes the door behind him, dripping water onto the floor. He startles when the light flicks on, looking up into Chad's knowing gaze and feels like the worst kind of scum when all he finds is compassion and worry. He's betraying his friends for a monster that's turning him into a monster too, and Chad isn't even angry with him.

They sit, silent, on the couch in the lounge for hours until the sun rises.

They all have to go home eventually; and it's been weeks since Ichigo has seen hide or hair of the mer, so maybe he's safe, maybe Byakuya has given up on reaching him.

He hugs his sisters close with a wide smile and Yuzu laughs while Karin groans. He dodges Isshin with practiced ease and things settle so perfectly into his old routine he almost forgets. The only thing that reminds him is the song, all of the songs, that he can hear, softly. Everyone has one and they ring pretty in his ears and betray every emotion anyone feels to him; informing him. It's useful.

It's been two months and Ichigo is only getting hungrier, frowning when his stomach rumbles right after dinner, and even Isshin is having trouble writing it off as a 'growing young boy's' healthy appetite, especially when he puts on no weight and doesn't grow any taller.

It's at school, a teacher's aide bent over a sink in the boy's bathroom, limp and dead, when he realizes what he's hungry for, why Byakuya was feeding him. The water is mirror-still but the sink is filled with the man's head and what's left of his shredded arms; and it's easy for Ichigo to peel a long, wet strip of meat from the dead man's throat and shoulder, eating it quickly and making sure there's no blood on him, stomach sated. He trails his fingers through the water by the man's head and Byakuya's fingers brush back; and he heads to class. The man was already dead, it's not his fault; he was just trying not to be wasteful.

He has a bath, that night, and Byakuya's arms wrap around him from behind, cold kisses scattered over his shoulders. "Mine. My sunlight. Knew you would come back." The mer practically purrs when Ichigo leans into the touch, eyes closing. "Yeah." He mumbles, shivering when Byakuya reaches down into the water and traces over him, where Ichigo refuses to touch; but instead of feeling wrong and making him dysphoric it just feels good, Byakuya's cold fingers petting him softly. "So warm." The mer groans throatily and Ichigo stifles a sound that was sure to be embarrassing.

He doesn't know what else to do, so he relaxes into Byakuya's hold and lets it happen, even as the mer decorates him with tiny bite marks and kiss-bruises.

Ribs crack and bend before splintering roughly, Ichigo's fingers digging deeper, deeper, crushing flesh and absently pressing it into his bloody mouth as Chad convulses, mostly dead if not all the way there yet.

"It's ok." Ichigo croons to his very best most treasured friend. "Byakuya will keep me very safe and happy. It's been done with others before, I know it'll work. Thank you for your heart." He tears the still-beating organ out in a spray of blood and sinks his teeth into the giving flesh, hot and chewy and messy. He licks his fingers clean, moving over to the pond and easily slipping in, Byakuya's arms encircling him as the mer grins widely. "Die for me, Ichigo? So I can have you properly, my mate." Ichigo huffs and kisses him, catching his lips on sharp teeth and tearing the skin. He doesn't care. "His heart was so full of love and worry." He mumbles. "You promise we can hunt together, have the best hearts?" Byakuya nods, almost frantic in his kisses now, taking, taking, taking as he pushes Ichigo under, hides the sun in the cold dark water, steals his breath and drowns him, holding him close and never once breaking the kiss.

..

:Congrats friend, you made it all the way through and didn't even skip down so you could flame the ever-living shit out of me! I hope, anyway.:


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